A month ago, I joined/co-hosted a sew-along for the Bionic Needle Organizer Wallet and before I knew what was happening, I was ink deep in toner.

This whole thing started with the fact that this needle case, an add-on pattern for the Bionic Gear Bag Notions Tote, requires that I use “freezer paper“. I suspect this thing is contraband and not allowed to cross the Quebec borders. How else can one explain why I can’t find it any grocery store — large or small — or any of the big-box department stores?

The instructions also suggest I can use one of the other great tutorials on the interwebs for transferring a design unto fabric — every single one of which requires that I print with an inkjet printer. So…

• Bought inkjet transfer paper.
• Inkjet printer has an error I can’t find online.
• Tried to print it on my ex’s laser printer.
• Spent a week cleaning melted plastic out of his printer and hoping he wouldn’t notice. (He did notice I was at his house a lot.)
• Gave the transfer paper to my friend to print on her inkjet.
• Her printer ran out of ink.
• Her hubby refused to pay the outrageous price for replacement ink and got a (gasp!) laser printer.
• I grab some embroidery thread, regular Sharpies and Sharpie pens.
• 3 days later, I end up with this:

So I gave up on that project and turned my attention to the next sew along. This time it was for the Needle Holder Project Pouch. I really loved the way this one looked, and the instructions were pretty good too. It even comes with a video tutorial on YouTube.

From all accounts of the people who made it during the sew-along, consensus is that it turned out great! Of course, I wouldn’t know because, well, more shit happened along the way; not the least of which was that I still didn’t have an inkjet printer, and freezer paper is still nowhere to be found in Quebec. (I was not going to pay more than $20 to have it shipped to a Walmart store near me. I’d rather take a road trip to Ontario or New York State.)

The results: both sew-alongs bombed from my end. The Bionic Needle Organizer has joined other scraps and fabric discards as stuffing for cat beds, and the Needle Holder Project Pouch is sitting in a fresh bin of UFOs (unfinished objects). And, I’m still using a magnifying glass and reading glasses to figure out which needle to put in the machine.

Is it any wonder I need to see my optometrist this week?

PS. Although it’s pretty fugly, I finally just bought this one from Amazon. Enough with the UFOs already!

In Canada:

In the USA:

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Tags: bionic gear, fabric transfer, inkjet printer, needle, organizer